A 16th-century chateau with outhouses and four hectares of grounds with a river, nestled in France's beautiful Ariège department, 40 minutes from the
A 16th-century chateau with outhouses and four hectares of grounds with a river, nestled in France's beautiful Ariège department, 40 minutes from the city of Toulouse.
The chateau lies in the Ariège plain, near France's Aude and Haute-Garonne departments. This corner of France is a remarkable natural area, edged with the Pyrenees mountains. It includes a Natura 2000 conservation zone, as well as four natural zones of ecological, faunistic and floristic interest. There are shops less than five kilometres from the property. These shops are in a medieval village with a wealth of built heritage. The town of Pamiers is 10 kilometres away. And you can reach the A66 motorway in just 10 minutes. The nearest train station is less than 15 minutes from the property. And Toulouse's train station is 55 minutes away. Carcassonne and Toulouse international airports are only 50 minutes away too.
A driveway snakes through meadows and riverside woods up to the south-facing chateau with its symmetrical design. The edifice is built in a U shape: a central section with two wings and two round adjoining towers. One of the round adjoining towers is at the chateau's north-east corner. The other one, which has a polygonal base, discreetly adjoins the west wing. The main section's court-facing facade displays layers of construction periods over its three levels with different window styles, which include limestone surrounds, brickwork arches and concrete sills. In contrast, the rear elevation has a more symmetrical appearance. The central section has plainly rendered elevations and a painted sundial on its facade. A staircase tower with a door at each level has kept its authenticity with lime-rendered walls of rubble limestone and a cannon slit that offers a view of the River Hers. The wings stand out for their evenly spaced bays with arched carriage gates in brick surrounds, limestone aeration openings and segmental-arch window surrounds of brick. These wing elevations also include painted stringcourses, small diamond windows and génoise cornices of tiles and brick. The central section is crowned with a gabled roof of barrel tiles and the wings are capped with hipped-end roofs of barrel tiles. The nearby outhouses include a former stable, a caretaker's dwelling and the rear wall of a building that was destroyed in 1942. Further away, there is a former chapel. Beneath it there is a cellar. This chapel includes a bread oven. There is a dovecote too. The chapel's perfect rendering draws your attention, as do its limestone quoins and its elegant triple-row génoise cornice. An orangery and agricultural storage buildings complete the estate, bearing witness to its past in farming.
The chateauThe chateau is surrounded by four hectares of grounds. The majestic edifice has a ground floor, a first floor and a second floor.
The ground floor
You enter the ground floor from the inner court via a few steps then a raised wooden double door. The central section's entrance hall connects to the reception rooms. There is a first large lounge with tall French windows that lead straight out to the back garden and bathe the room in natural light. This lounge features a fireplace. Beyond the lounge, there is an extensive dining room, which is now used for meals with guests. From here, a door leads into the west tower. The space also leads to a billiard room. A corridor with a floor of terracotta tiles runs alongside an elegant wooden staircase adorned with a wrought-iron balustrade. This corridor leads to the east wing. This section is more private. It includes a large dining room with a monumental fireplace - the chateau's centrepiece - and a kitchen where large gatherings for meals could also take place. This kitchen has a scullery and a large pantry. The west wing connects to the billiard room. This wing includes a lavatory, a ...
